Stress and Your Microbiome!

Apr 17, 2017

Stress and Your Microbiome!

The University of Guelph (U of G), a comprehensive public research university in Guelph, Ontario, Canada recently led the first study of its kind to understand the relationship between stress and the microbiome as published in the journal of Biology Letters.

U of G researchers found that red squirrels living in a low-stress environment harbored healthier communities of micro-organisms. Conversely, the greater the stress, when measured in the same squirrels two weeks later, revealed less bacterial diversity which could be an indication of poor health. It’s very possible these findings hold important implications for human health!

Just to fill in a few blanks, microbiomes are all of the clusters e.g. communities of micro-organisms thriving in and on the bodies of all living things, including people. Found in the mouth and gut and on the skin, microbiomes consist of a balanced mix of “good” and “bad” bacteria that continually changes, potentially affecting their host's health.

In recent years, brands like Dannon Activia and BioEsse Probiotic Skin Care have done excellent jobs of educating the masses to know that consuming and/or applying probiotics directly to the skin are good ways to keep our guts working better and our skin healthy. Based on U of G’s study, however, it’s possible adding probiotics to our diets can help balance the microbiome, helping to manage high stress levels which could ultimately lead to depression and other anxiety-related issues.

Combine a healthy gut microbiome with a healthy skin microbiome and your body will thank you! And the term “healthy from the inside out” will take on a whole new meaning!